Deep sea coring tower



Sept. 7, 1965 o. BARTON 3,204,709

DEEP SEA CORING TOWER Filed 001;. 21, 1963 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 FIG. l

INVENTOR.

OTIS BARTON @pt. 7, 1965 o. BARTON DEEP SEA CORING TOWER 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed 0C1. 21, 1963 INVENTOR. OTIS BARTON United States Patent 3,204,709 DEEP SEA CURING TOWER Utis Barton, Pacific Tughoat dz Salvage Co., Pier D, Long Beach, Calif. Filed Get. 21, 1963, Ser. No. 317,631 4 '(Jlaims. (Cl. 175--6) This invention relates to a deep sea coring tower for the purpose of obtaining core samples from the floor of a sea or the ocean.

An object of my invention is to provide a novel deep sea coring tower which is entirely self-contained, as far as a bottom platform and bracing is concerned, so that the entire tower with the core barrel and the driving means for the core barrel are contained within a single unit which can be transported as a whole from one position to another in the sea or ocean, and which can be easily and quickly lowered or raised by means of appropriate lifting apparatus, which may be mounted on a barge or vessel.

Another object of my invention is to provide a novel deep sea coring tower of the character stated, in which the driving mechanism for the core barrel is completely contained within the tower, and can be controlled by an electrical cable or conduit which runs to the surface and is there manually manipulated by the operator.

Another object of my invention is to provide a novel deep sea coring tower which will retain its position at the bottom of the sea or ocean, and will not be materiall y influenced or moved by tides or currents in the sea or ocean.

Another object of my invention is to provide a novel deep sea coring tower of the character stated, which will have sufiicient weight and lateral stability to maintain the tower in the position in which it is set at the bottom of the sea or ocean, and which will not tilt, drift, or otherwise alter the position in which it is set until it is desired to move the same, which is accomplished by means of suitable lifting apparatus.

Other objects, advantages and features of my invention may appear from the accompanying drawing, the subjoined detailed description and the appended claims.

. In the drawing:

FIGURE 1 is a fragmentary perspective View of my deep sea coring tower.

FIGURE 2 is a fragmentary perspective view of the core barrel driving mechanism.

FIGURE 3 is a fragmentary perspective view of the hyperbolic driving hubs.

FIGURE 4 is a fragmentary side view of the core barrel driving mechanism as viewed from line 4-4 of FIG- URE 2.

FIGURE 5 is a fragmentary sectional view taken on line 5-5 of FIGURE 4.

FIGURE 6 is a fragmentary vertical sectional view of the driving frame attachment to the floor of the tower as viewed from line 66 in FIGURE 1.

FIGURE 7'is a top plan view of the coring tower.

Referring more particularly to the drawing, my vertical coring tower 1 consists of a plurality of vertically extending corner posts 2. These posts are suitably spaced to form a substantially rectangular structure which is braced by means of transverse members 3. The members 3 and the corner posts 2 are fixedly secured together by suitable means, such as welding, brazing, bolting, or the like. The corner posts 2, as well as the braces 3, are preferably made of tubing to minimize the force against the tower created by ocean or sea currents or swells. The entire tower 1 is substantial in height (100 feet more or less) and, consequently, has considerable weight. The base of the tower consists of a plurality of heavy wood 3,264,709 Patented Sept. 7, 1965 or metal timbers or floor beams 4, and intersecting beams 5, which in themselves are very heavy and are of substantial length to thus provide lateral stability to the tower 1. A plurality of angular braces 6 extend from the floor or foundation members 4 to the vertical tower members or corner posts 2, thus bracing the tower against possible lateral movement. The tower l is of open construction so that currents and tide movements can flow back and forth through it, and these structures are still sufficiently heavy so that they will not be buoyant to a substantial degree,

but will sink rapidly into the ocean or sea until bottom is reached, upon which the floor or base members 4, 5 can rest. The upper end of the tower 1 is square, as shown in FIGURE 7, and a pair of parallel rods 7, 8 are fixedly mounted and are connected by a. plate 9, which is formed with a hole or hook structure It) to be engaged by the lifting apparatus whereby the tower is transported from place to place. With this arrangement the tower, when lifted, places the corner legs 2 and the braces 3 in tension, and also tensions the braces 6 to lift the floor members 4, 5 thus providing adequate structural strength so that the entire tower may be lifted from its upper end without structurally endangering any of the parts.

A base plate 11 is fixedly attached to the floor members 4, 5 of the tower, and this base plate has an opening therethrough through which the core barrel '12 extends to penetrate the ocean floor below the base of the tower. The core barrel 12 extends vertically in the tower 1 for substantially the entire length thereof, and can be lowered and rotated into the ocean floor for the purpose of obtaining a sample or core of that ocean floor. The driving mechanism of the core barrel 12 consists of the following: A pair of hyperbolic driving hubs 13, 14 are each mounted on an inclined shaft 15 and 16. These shafts are mounted at an acute vertical angle to the center line of the core barrel 12 and are driven in a manner to be subsequently described. So that the shafts 15 and 16 may be adequately rotated and without any power connection to the surf-ace, I provide self-contained and immersible driving units for each of these shafts. of a sealed box 17, preferably formed of metal, and which is completely filled with a suitable oil or the like surrounding an electric motor 18. These boxes, being completely filled with oil or other fluid, will exclude water and will permit the motor 18 to function properly. The motor shaft l9 projects from the box or housing 17 and is suitably sealed or packed oh to prevent intrusion of water. Suitable meshing gears 20 will drive the shaft 16 from the motor shaft 19, thus causing the hubs 13, 14 to rotate and drive the core barrel 12. The two boxes or housings -17 are each set at substantially the same angle as the shafts 15, 16, and the housing is mounted on a base member 21 which is fixedly attached to the base plate 11. The boxes or housings 17 are, in turn, fixedly attached to the base members 21, thus forming an integral unit. Frame members 22 extend upwardly from the housings 17, thus forming additional structural members to support the driving elements of the tower.

A supporting frame 23, formed of structural members, surrounds the bore barrel 12 and is substantially smaller in shape than the tower l and extends upwardly in that tower a short distance above the frames 22 of the boxes 17. The frames 22, in turn, are fixedly attached to the frame 23 at one end to again assist in rigidly mounting the housings or boxes 17, and to keep the shafts 15, 16 in proper alignment. The vertical members 24 of the frame 23 are bolted to the base 11 by means of bolt-s 25 which extend through the base and onto which suitable nuts are threaded, thus fixedly mounting the frame 23 to the base 11 and uniting this assembly with the tower 1 and its base members 4, 5, so that a single unitary structure is provided. Hermetically sealed battery boxes 26 are pro- Each driving unit consists.

-u vided on the floor 11 and are fixedly attached to this floor or base. These battery boxes supply current to the motors 18 through appropriate conduits which can be adequately sealed where they enter the battery boxes 26, and also Where they enter the housings 17. Thus the batteries, in turn, are protected against intrusion of water and will remain active over considerable lengths of time.

In operation The coring tower 1 is moved from place to place from a barge or ship which is floating on the sea or ocean. The derrick apparatus, of usual and well known construction, on the barge or ship is used to lift the entire tower 1 with its self-contained driving mechanism for the core barrel '12. The lifting derrick or the like on the barge or ship engages the top of the coring tower 1, that is, it hooks or attaches to the plate 9 at the top of the tower 1, which plate is fixedly attached or a substantially integral part of the transverse rods 7, 8. The lifting derrick engages the hole or hook 110 in the usual manner. The entire derrick 11, together with the base members or beams 4, which, in turn, support the base plate 11, is thus carried from place to place in the sea or ocean, and when the desired spot to obtain a core is reached the entire derrick is lowered until the base members 4, 5 rest on the ocean bottom. The tower 1 is then maintained in a vertical position and will not shift, sway, or drift materially, so that the core barrel 12 can be operated. The core barrel 12 is rotated and lowered by the self-contained driving mechanism consisting ofthe sealed boxes 17, which contain and seal the motors 13 within a bath of oil or other liquid contained within the boxes 17. The motors 18 each drive one of the shafts 15 or 16 which, in turn drive the hyperbolic driving hubs T3, 14, and these hubs frictionally engage the core barrel :12 to both rotate and lower the core barrel into the ocean bottom to secure a core. The motors 18 are each driven by batteries which are mounted in sealed containers 26, also fixedly mounted on the floor or base 11. Thus the driving mechanism can be started and stopped from the surface by a simple switch (not shown), and which is operated by a Workman on the barge or ship.

After a core is taken in the barrel 12 the entire tower 1 is lifted to the surface where the core can be recovered from the barrel 12, after which'the barrel is reassembled in its driving mechanism and the tower is then transported to another position and again lowered to the floor of the ocean or sea for additional cores. The tower 1 is formed of various structural members 2 and 3, which also add weight to the entire structure, and the weight of the tower, plus the long and heavy timbers or base members 4, 5, plus the floor 11 and the core barrel driving mechanism and batteries mounted thereon, all add sufficient weight so that the tower, when lowered to the floor of the sea or ocean, will remain in its set position with sufficient rigidity to permit an effective core to be taken in the barrel 12.

Having described my invention, I claim:

1. A deep sea coring tower formed of structural members and transportable tas a complete assembled unit including,

a plurality of vertical corner posts and braces extending between the corner posts,

a base formed of heavy intersecting beams, the lower ends of said corner posts being fixedly attached to the beams,

a core barrel extending vertically into the tower, means in said tower rotatably supporting the core barrel in a vertical position,

a base plate fixedly attached to said heavy beams,

a hermetically sealed box mounted on the base plate,

an electric motor in the box;

a drive shaft extending from the motor to the core barrel, a friction hub on the drive shaft frictionally engaging the outer surface of the core barrel to rotate said barrel and feed the barrel downwardly into the formation,

a base frame fixedly mounted on the base plate,

said box being fixedly mounted on the base frame at an acute angle to the center line of the core barrel.

2. A deep sea coring tower formed of structural members and transportable as a complete assembled unit including,

a plurality of vertical corner posts and braces extending between the corner posts,

a base formed of heavy intersecting beams, the lower ends of said corner posts being fixedly attached to the beams,

a core barrel extending vertically into the tower, means in said tower rotatably supporting the core barrel in a vertical position,

a base plate fixedly attached to said heavy beams,

a hermetically sealed box mounted on the base plate,

an electric motor in the box;

a drive shaft extending from the motor to the core barrel, a friction hub on the drive shaft frictionally engaging the outer surface of the core barrel to rotate said barrel and feed the barrel downwardly into the formation,

a base frame fixedly mounted on the base plate,

said box being fixedly mounted on the base frame at an acute angle to the center line of the core barrel,

a supporting frame surrounding the lower end of the core barrel within the tower,

means fixedly attaching the bottom end of the supporting frame to the base plate,

and means fixedly attaching the base frame to the supporting frame at an acute angle to the horizontal.

3. A deep sea coring tower formed of structural members and transportable as a complete assembled unit including,

a plurality of vertical corner posts and braces extending between the corner posts,

a base formed of heavy intersecting beams, the lower ends of said corner posts being fixedly attached to the beams,

21 core barrel extending vertically into the tower, means in said tower rotatably supporting the core barrel in a vertical position,

a base plate fixedly attached to said heavy beams,

a hermetically sealed box mounted on the base plate,

an electric motor in the box;

a drive shaft extending from the motor to the core barrel, a friction hub on the drive shaft frictionally engaging the outer surface of the core barrel to rotate said barrel and feed the barrel downwardly into the formation,

a base frame fixedly mounted on the base plate,

said box being fixedly mounted on the base frame at an acute angle to the center line of the core barrel,

an electric storage battery mounted in the tower, and

electrically connected to said motor,

another hermetically sealed box on said base plate,

said storage battery being mounted therein.

4. A deep sea coring tower formed of structural members and transportable as a complete assembled unit including,

a plurality of vertical corner posts and braces extending between the corner posts,

a base formed of heavy intersecting beams, the lower ends of said corner posts being fixedly attached to the beams,

a core barrel extending vertically into the tower, means in said tower rotatably supporting the core barrel in a vertical position,

a base plate fixedly attached to said heavy beams,

a hermetically sealed box mounted on the base plate,

an electric motor in the box;

a drive shaft extending from the motor to the core barrel, a friction hub on the drive shaft frictionally 5 6 engaging the outer surface of the core barrel to to another hermetically sealed box on said base plate, said tate said barrel and feed the barrel downwardly into g ery being mounted therein.

the formation,

a base frame fixedly mounted on the base plate, References Cited by the Examiner said box being fixedly mounted on the base frame at an 5 UNITED STATES PATENTS acute angle to the center line of the core barrel, 2,006,829 7 /3 5 Hansen 5 a supporting frame surrounding the lower end of the 2, 55, 35 1 54 Gignoux 175 core barrel within the tower, 2,669,431 2/54 Crowell 175-8 X means fixedly attaching the bottom end of the support- 10 3,004,612 10/61 Kofahl 1759 X ing frame to the base plate, 5,171 3/64 Stewart 175 -9 XR means fixedly attaching the base frame to the sup- FOREIGN PATENTS porting frame at an acute angle to the horizontal, 76,268 4/19 Austria.

an electric storage battery mounted in the tower, and

electrically connected to said motor, 15 CHARLES E. OCONNELL, Primary Examiner. 

1. A DEEP SEA CORING TOWER FORMED OF STRUCTURAL MEMBERS AND TRANSPORTABLE TAS A COMPLETE ASSEMBLED UNIT INCLUDING, A PLURALITY OF VERTICAL CORNER POSTS AND BRACES EXTENDING BETWEEN THE CORNER POSTS, A BASE FORMED OF HEAVY INTERSECTING BEAMS, THE LOWER ENDS OF SAID CORNER POSTS BEING FIXEDLY ATTACHED TO THE BEAMS, A CORE BARREL EXTENDING VERTICALLY INTO THE TOWER, MEANS IN SAID TOWER EXTENDING VERTICALLY INTO THE TOWER, MEANS A VERTICAL POSITION, A BASE PLATE FIXEDLY ATTAHED TO SAID HEAVY BEAMS, A HERMETICALLY SEALED ATTACHED TO SAID HEAVY BEAMS, AN ELECTRIC MOTOR IN THE BOX; A DRIVE SHAFT EXTENDING FROM THE MOTOR TO THE CORE BARREL, A FRICTION HUB ON THE DRIVE SHAFT FRICTIONALLY ENGAGING THE OUTER SURFACE OF THE CORE BARREL TO ROTATE SAID BARREL AND FEED THE BARREL DOWNWARDLY INTO THE FORMATION, A BASE FRAME FIXEDLY MOUNTED ON THE BASE PLATE, SAID BOX BEING FIXEDLY MOUNTED ON THE BASE FRAME AT AN ACUTE ANGLE TO THE CENTER LINE OF THE CORE BARREL. 